


Busted

by orphan_account



Category: The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: Gen, Oliver has not lost his big brother instincts, Trans Character, Trans Male Character
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-18
Updated: 2015-12-18
Packaged: 2018-05-07 11:07:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,124
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5454410
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Barry and Oliver are training when Barry runs into unexpected difficulty.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Busted

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own the Flash, otherwise Henry Allen would not have been put on a bus and Iris would get decent writing.

“Again,” Oliver called, nocking an arrow. As part of Barry’s training regime, Oliver had been called in to help increase Barry’s speed. At least that was the idea -  Barry and Oliver had very different ideas about what consisted of “training.” Barry had already done pushups until he collapsed, ran laps around the pipeline that made his head spin, and caught more arrows than he could count. Now, they were in the S.T.A.R. Labs basement, where Oliver had been shooting at him for the past half hour.

Barry groaned. “Seriously, Oliver? I must’ve done this a hundred times by now.”

However, Barry’s whining fell on deaf ears. “Thirty-seven times, and you’re _still_ not fast enough. Somebody’s going to come after you with a net, Barry, and you need to learn how to get out of it.”

Barry was unrepentant. “I have superspeed, Oliver,” he said grumpily. “I can just dodge it.”

“That’s not the point of this exercise,” Oliver replied, looking skyward in exasperation.

Barry rolled his eyes. “Fine,” he sighed. “One more time.” He sped to the other side of the basement. “Ready!” he called, massaging his chest with a wince.

Narrowing his eyes, Oliver noticed the gesture. He may not be a forensic scientist, but his years of experience taught him to recognize when somebody was in pain. Specifically, something was wrong with Barry’s ribs.

“Hold on,” he shouted back, lowering his bow. “Get over here!” Barry ran over, trying to hide the grimace of pain on his face.

“Go get Caitlin to patch you up, then come back in an hour,” Oliver said sternly. “We can’t train if you’re hurt.”

“I’m not hurt!” Barry protested. “Just a little sore, nothing major. Let’s keep going.” Oliver looked at him disapprovingly, even as Barry defiantly stared back. The legendary scowl of the Green Arrow often had henchmen running in terror, but Barry stood his ground.

“If you’re not hurt, then go run to the end and back without stopping,” challenged Oliver.

Barry grinned. “Easy,” he said, a flash of lightning accompanying him as he followed Oliver’s orders. However, when he returned, he was breathing hard, and his brow was furrowed.

“You’re having trouble breathing,” Oliver noted, his own eyebrows drawing together with concern. “You might’ve cracked a rib. You need to go get that fixed before it heals wrong.” He stretched out a hand towards Barry’s chest. “Here, let me-”

“No!” Barry yelped, speeding out of Oliver’s reach. “I swear, I’m fine.” He crossed his arms defensively. “Can we just _please_ get back to training now? I don’t know how to deal with nice Oliver.” Oliver stared at the other vigilante for a long moment, taking in Barry’s posture, the way he’d avoided his touch. The slight wrinkle around his torso was oddly familiar, reminding Oliver of something he’d seen years ago.

“You’re binding,” Oliver said flatly. “Barry, you should’ve said-”

“I should’ve said _what_?” Barry cried, his voice rising. “That I wasn’t born male? That you should go easy on me? Metas don’t _care_ , Oliver. I have to be able to fight like this, even if it’s not ideal.”

Oliver gritted his teeth. “What is not _ideal_ ,” he hissed, “is your ribs cracking and healing so that they puncture your lungs!” Barry froze, a guilty look on his face. Oliver bit his lip, his expression softening slightly.

“Tommy nearly did that,” Oliver said, quieter now that his point had been driven home. “The last thing Central City needs is you collapsing in the middle of a run because you can’t breathe properly. This isn’t about your identity, Barry, this is about your health.”

Barry hung his head. “I know,” he replied, his voice barely above a whisper. “I’d get the surgery, but I heal too fast for them to do it. Normally it’s not so bad, but my b- my binder’s in the wash, and-”

“So help me, Barry, if I wasn’t worried about your health I’d tranq you right now,” Oliver growled, hefting his bow. “Go home and change. Now. Then we’re getting Caitlin to give you an X-ray, and if she tells me you were using Ace bandages then you’ll be doing burpees until your hands fall off.” Barry reluctantly nodded, and vanished for a second before reappearing in his civilian clothes. He’d deliberately chosen a shirt two sizes too large, but there was still a small curve to his chest that had been hidden before.

The elevator ride back up was mercifully short, but as Barry moved to leave, Oliver caught him by the arm and marched him into the Cortex.

“Barry needs a chest X-ray to look for cracked ribs,” he announced, causing Barry to wince. “And a compression vest built into his suit.” Caitlin bustled around the medical bay, setting up the X-ray machine, while Cisco pouted.

“I told you I could rig something up that would work, Barry,” he complained, scooting across the room in his computer seat. “The tripolymer just needs some higher tensile strength material woven in. I’ll run a few simulations to make sure it doesn’t have too much stress on your ribs.” Oliver shot Barry yet another withering glare as the young man entered the medical bay with Caitlin. He stood there awkwardly, turning around as Barry pulled off his shirt to allow Caitlin to treat him. When they emerged a few minutes later, Barry moved to talk to Oliver.

“I figured you’d want some privacy,” Oliver said, clearing his throat awkwardly.

“Yeah,” Barry replied, his normally energetic voice subdued. “Thanks. For training me, too.” He stuck out his hand for Oliver to shake. Oliver took it, looking the other hero in the eyes.

“You know, you have a team for a reason.” His mouth twitched upward slightly. “When I didn’t trust mine to help me, things got...awkward.”

“Wow, Oliver Queen just smiled,” remarked Barry, but he was grinning as well. “Things must be worse than I thought.”

Oliver snorted. “Hardly. Look, I know this isn’t something you’re really comfortable sharing with others, but it’s as much a part of your health as anything else.”

“I know, I know,” Barry replied teasingly, but it was clear he understood. “Joe’s been telling me I need to take better care of myself, and he’s right, honestly.” He rubbed his neck before stretching and wincing slightly. “The sooner I get healed, the better.”

“Right, well,” Oliver nodded, satisfied that Barry had learned his lesson. “I left you with an exercise regimen designed to promote cardio and respiratory function. Keep it up, and it should help more than just running on the treadmill.” He turned to leave, but before he exited, Oliver turned around. “Oh, and Barry?”

“Yeah?”

“Keep working on the nets.”

 

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> Don't bind with Ace bandages, or Oliver will hunt you down and it won't be pretty.


End file.
